The backhoe has to be one of the weirdest designs when it comes to construction equipment. It looks a little like a praying mantis, sitting ready to pounce. Despite it’s weird design, the backhoe is one of the most versatile and most effective machines in use.

Comprising of a small bucket on the front and a smaller square trench digging bucket at the back (hence the term backhoe), the backhoe can work in quite small spaces and can be found at some stage on most building sites, particularly smaller ones like housing developments.

The small square bucket is generally used to dig trenches for foundations or for services such as water and gas. The larger bucket at the front is used to backfill and to clean up around a site. Where the backhoe becomes the versatility king is in the attachments that can be added. The backhoe can be removed and replaced with attachments such as a digging spike used for breaking up rock and concrete.

If you were to take a small front end loader and cut it in half and then add a small version of an excavator, without the swiveling cab, you would have a backhoe. Experienced operators of excavators or front end loaders have little trouble operating a backhoe, the reverse is not generally the case.

For an interesting career as either a backhoe operators, front end loader operator or excavator operator then check out the training program available through ATS Heavy Equipment Operator Schools.

Hydraulic excavators are no to dissimilar to traditional excavators. They include the standard work unit which has a 360° swing mounted on an undercarriage used for travel. The front-end attachment can be exchanged to allow for a wide range of applications including digging and loading.

The hydraulic excavator is driven hydraulically in a manner completely different to a mechanically driven type. The engines mechanical energy is converted into hydraulic energy. The hydraulic energy is then passed along and then converted back into mechanical energy. In other words, travel, swing and dig is all done by hydraulic power.

A major feature of a hydraulic excavator is the full 360° swing along with the combined operations of digging, loading and swing ensuring high operating efficiencies and production. By exchanging the front-end attachments, a wider range of applications are available.

Whether it is a standard excavator or an hydraulic excavator, the basic operations are still the same and the same training is required. ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools can provide training to get you into a career as an excavator operator.

The excavator and bulldozer play a tag team role in many mining environments, none more so than the coal mining industry. Here they are the kings of heavy equipment virtually running the whole show. All other heavy equipment rely on these two operating effectively.

Excavators are powerful units of heavy equipment designed to chew away at the coal face, taking huge bites. Most excavators rely on one or more conveyor belts to remove the mined material to either large dump trucks or to a huge pile awaiting transport away from the mine.

Bulldozers provide the grunt when it comes to push. Bulldozers collect the excess material from around the excavator. This allows for easier for easier movement around the site. The bulldozer is also ensuring that all the mined coal is heaped up ready for transport.

The work hand-in-hand; one scraping the other pushing. Heavy equipment operators in the coal mining industry may specialize in just one piece of equipment or they may be relied upon to operate several different pieces of heavy equipment. Gaining a cross section of training is always going to be a big plus when it comes to looking fro employment.

At ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools we endeavor to provide you with that cross section of heavy equipment training to prepare you for employment in a cross section of industries including the coal mining industry.

The mining industry would not survive today if were not for the heavy equipment used. The world’s appetite for raw materials is such that no amount of human power could ever hope to satisfy it.

There are several different types of heavy equipment in use, particularly in open cut or surface mining. There are those that dig and gouge away at the material being mined, and there are those that push the mined material around. A third group are involved in the transportation of the mined materials.

Excavators do a lot of the actual digging. Some mines sites use explosives to loosen the material then bring in huge shovels that effectively take big bites of the loose material and dump it into equally large dump trucks.

Large bulldozers are used either to scrape up the loose material and work in conjunction with shovels. The bulldozer forms a large pile that shovel can then scoop up. Bulldozers are also used to rehabilitate areas once the raw materials have been mined out.

The trucks used to carry the material to a loading site are massive. Their wheels are the two or three times the height of a man, require large specifically built fork lifts to get the wheels on and off and use tires that can cost up $50,000 each – forget all four – that’s each.

The one thing these heavy equipment operators have in common is the basic training required before they can commence work. Training organizations such as ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools can prepare you for a career in the mining industry. Inquire now for details on a course starting near you.

As I have mentioned in previous posts, excavators come in a range of shapes and sizes including the mini or compact excavators. Although a lot smaller than their bigger brothers, and often the subject of many construction site jokes, the compact excavator plays a very valuable role in our society.

Compact excavators have many advantages over other heavy equipment, such as being highly maneuverable and, of course, compact in size. Compact excavators only require a small trailer and truck to transport rather than the large flatbed. They have a much larger range of motion, attachment-carrying versatility, excellent visibility, and better fuel economy.

The range of tasks that a compact excavator can perform are broad and it can complete job in a fairly confined area where other heavy equipment can’t gain access. The machine can, for example, be used on a small construction area to break up the surface or an old concrete base using an attached hammer or breaker. It can then help to load a truck using a special ‘thumb’ attachment and bucket.

Once the debris has been removed, it can level site prior to spreading a base using a standard blade. With a compactor attachment, it can firm down the base ready for the concrete pour. Once the concrete has cured the compact excavator can be used to backfill around the concrete and generally tidy up the site. All of this in a fairly confined space. The job of several larger machines done by one machine. The labor of 10 men and several weeks reduced to one man, a machine, and a couple of days.

You can see why these little beasts are becoming popular. Why are they the butt of jokes? Probably because the larger machines feel threatened! Operating a compact excavator is similar to the large version. Training on heavy machinery will provide the set of skills required to operate machinery of all sizes and ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools specializes in training heavy equipment operators.

Excavators are not always excavators. Sometimes, rather than digging holes everywhere like my pet lab, they are used to demolish everything in sight – again, just like my pet lab. All jokes aside, heavy equipment has always had a role to play in demolition work. When you consider how big some buildings are, you can see why. To do it by hand would take years.

These days, a few well placed explosive charges will have a building collapse inside itself. The heavy equipment then rolls in to complete the job. In the past, large cranes where brought it. Their job was to swing huge metal balls at the remaining walls and knock them down. It was slow and dangerous work. These days, excavators are used to pull down the wall.

The long reach excavator an excavator with an especially long boom arm, that is used to demolish buildings. It is designed to reach the upper stories of buildings that are being demolished and pull down the structure in a safe and controlled way.

To operate a long reach excavator requires the same basic skills as a standard excavator operator. These skills can be acquired through ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools. Check out our website for a location near you.

Most people look at an excavator as a trench digger, or perhaps as a piece of heavy equipment capable of digging holes. Excavators are actually very versatile pieces of equipment that can do a lot depending on the attachments that are available.

Excavators have been used in a wide variety of situations from demolition work through to brush cutting when operators use hydraulic attachments. Some of the task involving excavators include:

1. Digging of trenches, holes, foundations
2. Demolition
3. General grading/landscaping
4. Heavy lift, e.g. lifting and placing of pipes
5. River dredging
6. Mining, especially, but not only open-pit mining
7. Brush cutting with hydraulic attachments

Learning to operate an excavator is not difficult, however learning how to do the more specific tasks such as river dredging may require more intensive on the job training. However, if you don’t have the basic skills then learning some of the more advanced task could be very difficult.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools has a full range of heavy equipment training including excavators. Pay them a visit and see if becoming an excavator operator is a career for you.

If you have seen an excavator or excavators at work then you will know they are quite powerful and can excavate trenches fairly quickly. What you may not be aware of is the range of attachments that can be added to the equipment. These attachments provide for a wide range of tasks that an excavator can perform. Attachments include:

• Jackhammers: Jackhammers are used to break up material such as hard earth, rock or concrete;
• Shovels: Hydraulic mining excavators often use shovels;
• Grapples: Grapples are similar to claws and are used to grasp objects such as trees or tree stumps;
• Augers: Augers are similar to a drill bit, and are used to drill through materials to help break them up.

Operating these attachments is not difficult and often taught on the job. Using the attachments is often the easy part. The difficult part can often be the process of attaching and removing the attachment.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools provide training for all heavy equipment including excavators.

There are many different types of equipment that come under the classification of heavy equipment. Some of these machines are specialized and training is generally undertaken on the job. A prerequisite to gaining employment and subsequent training for many companies is some form of heavy equipment training and experience.

One specialized machine that you wont see every day is the bucket-wheel excavator. These machines are used in surface mining and civil engineering. The bucket-wheel gets its name from the design – a large rotating wheel mounted on an arm or boom with a series of scoops or buckets on the outer edge of the wheel. As the wheel turns, the buckets remove soil or rock and carry it around to the backside of the wheel where it falls onto a conveyor.

Some bucket-wheel excavators truly fit the classification of heavy equipment. The can be over 200 meters long and up to 100 meters in height.

The largest machines are used in German strip-mining operations. They cost over $100 million, take 5 years to assemble, require 5 people to operate and weigh more than 13,000 tons. The MAN Takraf is recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest land vehicle.

Of course they are the giants. There are smaller bucket-wheel excavators in use. To operate on of those machines requires specialized training. This training is based on your knowledge and experience in using excavators or other heavy equipment such as bulldozers or motor graders.

You can receive training in heavy equipment such as bulldozers, motor graders and excavators through ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools.

Excavators are heavy equipment used in mining, construction and other civil works. The machine consists of a cab mounted on a turntable atop an undercarriage with tracks or wheels. The term excavator is often used to describe any piece of digging equipment.

Large excavators are useful for digging foundations and other huge projects that require heavy equipment. There are times when you will need a smaller excavator to handle a job. These smaller excavators are also called compact excavators or mini excavators.

Excavators often have attachments that can be fitted in place of the bucket. These attachments include jackhammers, shovels, grapples, and augers. Grapples are similar to claws and are used to grasp objects. Hydraulic mining excavators often uses shovels. Augers are similar to a drill bit, and are used to move materials.

The role of excavators is to dig holes, trenches, and foundations. In addition, excavators can be used in demolition, general landscaping, grading, heavy lifting, laying pipes, river dredging, mining, open-pit mining, and brush cutting.

No matter what the use, an excavator operator requires training and ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools have all the accredited training you may require to work in the construction industry.